MB: Having fun on Father's day!

Swimming with Nena!

MB: Enjoying our date day together!

How I love this sweet boy!

MB: Pajamas day!

Daniel looked this time...

MB: It is pajamas day at school today!

This week is the last week before the summer program begins and it's called "Wacky week". Each day they get to wear and do things differently!

Daniel was a bit grumpy this morning so didn't want to look at the camera...but I got a photo of Ms. Ashley (blue) and Mrs. Tran (pink) and some of the other kids!

MB: The beginning of a fun week at school!

Wishing you a blessed week loved ones!

MB: Today is "backwards" day at school!

Mobile Blogging (MB) To Come!

I just figured out how to blog from my mobile phone and this is SO exciting! There have been many times when I wished I could have just sent a photo or a quick update about something that was happening, but by the time I had a chance to sit at my computer and blog, time had passed, I had other things to blog about and some specific events just didn't get recorded. But now it is possible! Jonny and I recently upgraded our phones to the iPhone (which we LOVE!) and with it, we can take photos and send an e-mail to my blog directly as we are out and about, which then gets immediately published as a new blog post!

So, from now on, whenever you see a blog post title that starts with "MB:" you will know that it is a new post sent directly from my mobile, as things happen! It's all getting more exciting! :-)

P.S. If you do not receive notification of new blog posts via e-mail and would like to do so, please register your e-mail on the top right-hand corner of the blog.

New Pre-School: First Report, Zoo Trip and More!

Daniel has been now at his new school for just over a month and is doing extremely well! He has only cried once when Jonny dropped him off (never with me) and is almost always sad to come home in the afternoons. He just loves his new school! His main teacher, Mrs. Tran, is just phenomenal; she is kind and calm with an authoritative presence that is just perfect for 3 year olds. There are only 10 kids in his class (24 in the whole school ages 3-5) and most of them are already 4, so the atmosphere is a lot calmer than in his previous class (which had 16 two and a half to three year olds). 

The biggest challenge for him going to this new school has been that he has to use the bathroom all on his own. He had a couple of accidents the first week, but since then, has been doing just fine with that -- what a big boy!

The school is about 3 minutes away from my work so the location is just perfect. The current arrangement we have really could not be better, so we are so thankful to God for this provision!

This past Thursday, Jonny and I went to our first "parent-teacher" conference to talk with Mrs. Tran about Daniel. She only had good things to say about him and said she has been very impressed at how quickly he has adjusted to the school.This is the written report she shared with us:

"Daniel is doing great in my classroom! He has adjusted so well to our schedule and routines and is having fun with his new friends. While he is still a little shy in the morning sometimes, after a few minutes, he begins doing an activity (whether it's reading a book in the classroom or riding a tricycle out on the playground).

In the classroom, so far his favorite activities are using the train set and wooden city (that has a fire station in it) and playing in the dramatic play area (where again, he can be a firefighter)! He gets his friends to join in and together, they take fire trucks out through the classroom, rescuing people and using the fire hose. He has a wonderful imagination and I'm happy I've been able to get to know him these past few weeks.

I have seen that on occasion, he is uncomfortable using the bathroom in the classroom when he really needs to go so just keep having him use it in the mornings when he is dropped off will help him become more comfortable when he needs to use it during the day.

I've also noticed that he is quite social around the room and participates in all activities. He also answers and asks questions during circle time and seems comfortable doing so. It's obvious you have intellectual conversations with him at home because he shares that with us at school as well."

I haven't taken many photos of Daniel at his new school yet, but I took a few with my phone the day he went on his first field trip to the zoo -- just with his teachers and friends! I was happy to see that all the children wore the same t-shirt which had an emergency phone number on the back, and that Mrs. Tran was personally responsible for Daniel (each adult had to take care of 2 specific children -- some parents went as chaporones). One of the teachers took some photos at the zoo of the animals and children too -- it's easy to spot Daniel is his light-blue hat.

Daniel had a blast at the zoo! He said, "I want to go there again!" They all went together in a yellow school bus which was also a highlight for Daniel. His teacher said he just did wonderfully. He didn't once complain that he was tired and was able to keep up with all the kids, even though he was the youngest. We were so excited for him too and relieved it went so well!

Just this past Thursday, there was a family picnic in the afternoon to celebrate the end of the school year (the summer program, which is more like a summer camp, will start on June 20th). It was a great event and Daniel got to enjoy some new activities for the first time:

Thank you Lord for Daniel's new pre-school and that he has adjusted so well! This has been such an answer to prayer!

Memorial Day Weekend Part 2: Visit To The Memorial Park

It has become a family tradition to visit Jonathan David's grave every year on Memorial Day (this was our visit in 2009 when Daniel was 1 years old, and this was our visit last year, when he was 2). Every year I wonder how Daniel will react, and so far every year, it has been a very natural and peaceful event. This time, at age 3, we were able to tell Daniel more about his brother and explained to him that Jonathan David's body was buried under the grave marker. I was a little worried that he would get scared, but he just took all the information in very matter of factly... it's hard to gauge how much he really understands.

Jonny, as always, cleaned the grave marker with lots of care and love and we put new flowers. This time Daniel participated in the cleaning by holding the flowers and watching carefully what Jonny did. It was a special time, not too sad but reflective, and we prayed together about our first son...

Daniel noticed the cross on the grave marker and said: "Look, mamae, it's Jesus' cross!" So happy he knows what it is...



Memorial Day Weekend Part 1: Strawberry Picking!

For years I have wanted to go strawberry picking and finally this year, we went! The last time I went strawberry picking I was about 1 and a half years old. I don't actually remember it, but I have seen photos of me in a cute light blue outfit hanging on to my mother's back, as she picked strawberries in the late 70s, here in Maryland! (Vozinha, I would love to see those photos again and get a copy!)

We finally remembered this year that the best time to go is at the end of May and since Daniel is now 3, we thought it would be a perfect family activity. And it was! Not because Daniel enjoyed the picking (he wasn't really interested in it at all actually - he probably picked 2 strawberries in total after much encouragement) but because we gave it a try, Jonny really got in to it (I found it more laborious than I had expected and so preferred to enjoy the scenery and take photos instead), we went with our neighbors and had a great picnic afterwards together at the farm under a big tree!

The main pickers: Heather and Jonny

The boys look hard at work, don't they? They were admiring the picked strawberries in the basket....

The final result after about 45 minutes of picking...

Daniel enjoyed walking around and seeing the tractor in the distance.

He then enjoyed "driving" a tractor inside the barnhouse.

Daniel and Devesh...

Picnic time! Baby Maya is already 10 months old and ate some of the quesadillas I made too!

Fun dad = very happy baby!

Two friends together = very happy boys!

We then went home and quickly walloped all the strawberries. We made: strawberry smoothie, strawberry popsicles and just ate a bunch fresh!

I hope Daniel will look back at these photos one day, as I did with my own childhood ones, and look forward to taking his own family strawberry picking... Sweet times.